EGR Valve: Description and Operation

The EGR valve consists of three major components. First there is the pintle, valve seat, and housing which contains and regulates the gas flow. Second there is the armature, return spring, and solenoid coil to provide the operating force to regulate the flow by changing the pintle position. The solenoid coil assembly is in parallel with a diode and connects to the two connectors in the connector assembly. The third major component which senses pintle position and is connected to the three connectors in the electrical connector.

The exhaust gas recirculation flow is determined by the engine controller. For a given set of conditions, the engine controller knows the ideal exhaust gas recirculation flow to optimize NOx and fuel economy as a function of the pintle position. Pintle position is obtained from the position sensor. The engine controller adjusts the duty cycle of 128 Hz power supplied to the solenoid coil to obtain the correct position.